Skin diving harness construction



Nov. 27, 1962 I. w. LANDE 3,065,888

' SKIN DIVING HARNESS CONSTRUCTION Filed March 2, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 1W12! 11 Am I y aver/hr 6y%#a Nov. 27, 1962 w. LANDE SKIN nrvmc HARNESSCONSTRUCTION 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 2. 1959 FIG. 2

fipzjqy 111. Laud? Nov. 27, 1962 w. LANDE SKIN DIVING HARNESSCONSTRUCTION 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 2. 1559 wary;

Nov. 27, 1962 I. w. LANDE 3,065,888

SKIN DIVING HARNESS CONSTRUCTION Filed March 2, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 411711219 fl Land? @1001 tyyma Y m Nov. 27, 1962 l. w. LANDE 3,065,888

SKIN DIVING HARNESS CONSTRUCTION Filed March 2, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 5nited States 3,065,888 SKIN DIVHJG HARNESS CGNSTRUCTION Irving W. Lande,52 Grove Hill Ave, Newton, Mass Filed Mar. 2, 1959, Ser. No. 796,371 3Claims. (Cl. 224-) vide a harness of the foregoing type comprising, innovel :association; a frame component including a medial portion to beheld against the back of a wearer and a pair of hinged wing portions tobe held against the sides of :a wearer; shoulder belting extending fromone of the wing portions over one shoulder to the medial portion andover the other shoulder to the other of the wing portions; Waist beltingextending around the waist from one of the wing portions, to the medialportion and to the other of the wing portions. The shoulder belting isadjustably connected to the central portion by slots which providesufficient freedom to enable the diver to put on the harness himselfwithout help. The waist belting is designed to hug the waist at spacedpositions along its periphery in order to obviate any necessity forcrotch straps of the type that have been used to prevent Wobbling andsliding in relation to the divers body. The center portion of the frameis provided with a hook and a resilient connector by which one or moretanks may be securely but readily connected to the frame and exchangedfor a fresh tank quickly, even underwater.

Other objei of the present invention will in part be obvious and will inpart appear hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises the product pos :sessing thefeatures, properties, and relation of components, which are exemplifiedin the following detailed disclosure, and the scope of the applicationof which will be indicated in the appended claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the presentinvention, reference should be had to the following detailed descriptiontaken in connection with the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a rear perspective view of a harness, embodying the presentinvention, as it would appear when carried out of the water on oneshoulder of a diver;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective View of the harness of FIG. 1, as it wouldappear when worn in the water;

FIG. 3 is a top view of a component of the harness of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an inside front view of portions of the harness of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of FIG. 3, taken substantially along the line5-5;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of FIG. 4, taken substantially along the line6-6;

FIG. 7 is a side view, showing fragments of the harness of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of one of the elements shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary top view of FIG. 7, illustrating detailsthereof;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary top view of a multi-tank arrangement analogousto the single tank arrangement of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary top view of anther multi-tank 3,065,888Patented Nov. 27, 1962 ice arrangement analogous to the single tankarrangement of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a front perspective view of an alternative harness of thepresent invention, as it would appear when Worn in the water;

FIG. 13 is a detail view of a fragment of the harness of FIG. 12; and

FIG. 14 is a detail view of another fragment of the harness of FIG. 12.

Generally, the embodiment of the present invention illustrated in FIGS.1 through 9 is a harness 20 to be worn upon the body of the skin diverfor the purpose of enabling the skin diver to carry. one or more tanks22 of air, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 7. Harness 20 comprises a frame 24to be substantially in contact with the back and waist of the diver,shoulder belting 26 to engage the shoulders of the diver and to fixcertain portions of harness 24 with respect thereto, waist belting 28 toengage the waist of the diver and to fix other portions of frame 24 withrespect thereto, and connecting elements by which tank 22 may be securedto frame 24.

'Frame 24 (FIG. 4) includes a medial yoke 32 including a verticallongitudinal section 34 and a pair of oppositely directed transversesections 36 and 38. Oppositely extending from transverse sections 36 and38 are a pair of wings 40 and 42. Wings 40 and 42 are pivoted totransverse sections 36 and 38 by interacting hinge elements 44 and 46,which are integral with their respective transverse sections and wingsand are aligned by suitable pins (not shown). Wings 40 and 42 taperoutwardly in the upward direction to accommodate the rib-cage of thewearer.

Shoulder belting 26 (FIGS. 2 and 4) includes a first portion 48 that isconnected at one end to a slot 50 in wing 40 by a loop 52, that isthreaded through a pair of offset slots 54 and 56 in longitudinalsection 34 of yoke 32, and that extends over the other shoulder throughan S-shaped locking clip 60 to a rectangular fastening ring 58. Shoulderbelting 26 includes a second portion that is connected to wing 42through a slot 62 by a loop 64 and to a cam buckle 66, which may beattached to or detached from loop 58, conveniently.

Waist belting 28 extends from -a fastening ring 68 through an S-shapedlocking clip 70, a slot 72 in wing 42, a pair of slots 74 and 76 in yoke32, a slot 78 in wing 40 and to a cam buckle 80 to which it is connectedby a loop 82.

As shown in FIG. 7, tank 22 is provided medially with a strap 84, theopposite extremities of which are tied by a nut and bolt assembly 86.Strap 84 grips the upstanding arms 88 and 99 of a fastener 92 that isprovided with a bight 94. Bight 94 operates in a manner now to bedescribed.

The lower extremity of longitudinal section 34 of yoke 32 is providedintegrally with a hook element 30. Hook element 30 includes (FIG. 3) arearwardly extending intermediate section 96, an upwardly extendingreverse section 98 and a transversely projecting extension section 100.Hook element 3%) is designed for locking insertion into the regionbetween bight 94 of fastener 92 and tank 22. When tank 22 is in uprightorientation with respect to longitudinal section 34, with hook 30 inengagement with fastener 92, a helical spring 102, which engages theneck of tank 22 and is connected at its opposite ends to longitudinalsection 34, is capable of maintaining tank 22 in predeterminedorientation with respect to yoke 32.

In practice the diver can put on this harness easily himself even whenwearing a diving suit with full equipment. When putting the harness on,the diver picks up the harness by shoulder portion strap 48 and drops itupon one shoulder. The length of this portion may be adjusted by forcingincrements of this portion through slots 54 and 56. When so adjusted,this portion will not slip because of the positioning of slots 54 and 56with respect to the shoulders. Thereafter, ring 58 is secured to cambuckle 66. Similarly, fastening ring 70 is attached to cam buckle 80. Itis apparent that shoulder belting 26 may be adjusted by S-shaped lockingclip 60 and that waist belting 28 may be adjusted by S-shaped lockingclip 70. The detachability of fastening ring 58 and cam buckle 66 avoidsany necessity of shrugging a free elbow and shoulder into a tightshoulder strap. By virtue of hook 30, tank 22 may be secured to frame 24with ease. In the water, rigidity of frame 24 prevents wobble and thepoints of contact provided by the shoulder belting 26 and waist belting28 prevent any substantial movement of tank 22 from its intendedposition.

FIGS. and 11 illustrate multiple tank arrangements designed inaccordance with the present invention. In FIG. 10, two tanks 104 and 106are held together by the band 108, which is tightened between the tanksby a nut and bolt arrangement 110 and which is provided with a hook 112.Hook 112 is similar to hook 92 of FIG. 8 and is carried by a cross piece114 that is affixed at its opposite ends to band 108. In FIG. 11, threetanks 116, 118 and 120 are held together by a band 122 that is tightenedat its opposite extremities by a nut and a bolt arrangement 124, as wellas by nut and bolt arrangements 126 and 128 between adjacent tanks. Ahook 130, analogous in all respects to hook 92 of FIG. 8, is grippedbetween band 122 and the center tank 118.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIGS.12, 13 and 14, a frame 132, analogous in all respects to frame 24 ofFIG. 4, is associated with shoulder and waist belting 134 of novelconstruction. As shown, frame 132 includes a yoke 136, analogous to yoke32 of FIG. 4, and a pair of wings 138 and 140, analogous to wings 40 and42 of FIG. 4. Belting 134 extends from a fastening clip 142, to which itis connected by a loop 144, through a pair of slots 146 and 143 in wing138, over one shoulder to a pair of offset slots 150 and 152, over theother shoulder through a slot 154 in wing 140, through an S-shapedadjusting clip 156 and to a locking cam 158. Slots 146 and 148 aredisposed at an angle of substantially 45 with respect to each other inorder to permit adjustment but to prevent slippage. Slot 154, which isrelatively wide compared to slots 146 and 148, is at an angle ofapproximately 45 with respect to the horizontal. Slot 154 permits freeslippage therethrough. A stop 160 is provided between slot 154 andadjusting clip 156 for the purpose of limiting the slippage through slot154 when cam buckle 158 and fastening clip 142 are disengaged.

In practice, the diver first may lift the harness to one shoulder bymeans of the securely fastened portion of belting 134, next may readilyinsert his other shoulder through the remainder of the belting and thenmay tighten the remainder of the belting upon the latter shoulder andaround the waist by attaching cam buckle 158 to fastening clip 142.

As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, a pair of tanks 162 and 164, which may becarried by frame 132, may be provided with a hook element 166 generallysimilar to hook element 92 above, except for an outwardly splayedarrangement of its upstanding arms. These arms are gripped between strap168 and tanks 162 and 164 by virtue of the tension generated by a nutand bolt assembly 170.

Since certain changes may be made in the above prodnot without departingfrom the scope of the invention herein involved, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted in an illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

I claim:

1. A harness for mounting an air supply upon the body of a skin diver,said harness comprising a frame including a yoke portion and a pair ofwing portions pivoted thereto, and belting including waist portionsextending through slots in said wing portions, a pair of shoulderportions extending through slots in said wing portions and slots in saidyoke portion, and quick release means for said belting, one of saidshoulder portions being adjustably fixed and the other of said shoulderportions being at least partially released when said quick release meansis opened, an air supply in the form of at least one tank beingconnected to said harness, a loop fastened to one portion of said tank,a hook integral with said frame and including an intermediate section, areverse section and a projection section in engagement with said loop,and a resilient connector connected to said yoke portion around anotherportion of said tank.

2. A harness for mounting an air supply upon the body of a skin diver,said harness comprising a frame including a yoke portion and a pair ofwing portions pivoted thereto, and belting including waist portionsextending through slots in said wing portions, and a pair of shoulderportions extending through slots in said wing portions and slots in saidyoke portion, a quick release means for one of said waist portions and aquick release means for one of said shoulder portions, the other of saidshoulder portions being adjustably fixed, an air supply in the form ofat least one tank being connected to said harness, a loop fastened toone portion of said tank, a hook integral with said frame and includingan intermediate section, a reverse section and a projection section inengagement with said loop, and a resilient connector connected to saidyoke portion'around another portion of said tank.

3. A harness for mounting an air supply upon the body of a skin diver,said harness comprising a frame including a yoke portion and a pair ofwing portions pivoted thereto, and belting including waist portionsextending through slots in said wing portions, a pair of shoulderportions extending through slots in said wing portions and slots in saidyoke portion, and quick release means for said belting, one of saidshoulder portions being adjustably fixed and the other of said shoulderportions being at least partially released when said quick release meansis opened, and at least one tank connected to said harness, whereby whensaid release means is opened, said harness and said tank may be readilyfreed from said body, said harness further having a loop fastened to oneportion of said tank, a hook integral with said frame and including anintermediate section, a reverse section and a projection section inengagement with said loop, and a resilient connector connected to saidyoke portion around another portion of said tank.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,613,440 Carek Ian. 4, 1927 2,864,361 Johnson Dec. 16, 1958 FOREIGNPATENTS 517,962 France Dec. 23, 1920 234,304 Switzerland Jan, 16, 1945

